My Little Angel
by Astro Purple
Summary: Exactly how much does Lydecker care about his "kids." And how far is he willing to go to protect them? Rated PG. R/R please!
1. Default Chapter

My Little Angel  
  
By Astro Purple  
  
AstroPurpl@aol.com  
  
PG for language and violence.  
  
Timeline: Anytime before Max killed Ben. He hadn't gone crazy yet and Zack just found him.  
  
Summary: Exactly how much does Lydecker care about his "kids." And how far is he willing to go to protect them?  
  
Disclaimer: Dark Angel characters belong to the wonderful people who bring Dark Angel to us.  
  
* * *  
  
PROLOGUE  
  
I knew as I watched them being born that they were different. Different than the other X series I had helped to create. These kids, designated the X5, I felt a special bond towards them. As I watched them, they weren't just any kids, they were my kids. The previous series had all failed, coming up with abnormalities or just not being strong enough to survive, but this series, they had to survive. They had to grow up to be superior and to be "the" best.  
  
The first four years as I watched them, they made me proud. In the premier stages of their development, they had shown how superior and smart they were. The nurses assigned to watch as infants noted that the older kids, more specifically X5-599 and X5-656, had developed maternal instincts somehow. I knew how, they didn't trust the nurses to carefully handle the kids, just like I didn't trust them. I tried to be there as often as I could, pleading the need to observe their development first hand, however, I had to make sure they were being treated right.  
  
The X5 series was the most successful, this became apparent as the years went by. I watched them grow in intelligence, accepting that as a squadron they were family, but not knowing how they knew. They couldn't know. I fed them the information little by little. I taught them what being a family means, and that they were brothers and sisters. They thought they were so smart to figure out that out in the real world, people had names, in truth, I helped them by making sure to call those near me by name instead of title.  
  
I felt bad at the time for pushing them so hard. They helped each other, and I'm proud of that trait, but I wish that I could have been the real father I felt I was. I wish I could have been there to pick them up when they fell, to play football or basketball with them, to tend to their wounds, to eat dinner with them and listen to them talk about their day, to read them bedtime stories, to tuck them in, and to be able to tell each of them how much I loved them. But I couldn't. I had to prepare them, toughen them up for the life they were to lead outside of Manticore. Yes, I knew even before most of them that they would plan an escape from Manticore. X5-599, Zack, had been planning for a long time to get his family out. He tried to hide it, and he was successful except for me. I had watched him grow up his entire life, if anyone knew him as well as himself, it'd be me. I could see it in his eyes, the distant fantasy look they got each time something associated with the world outside was mentioned. I also knew that if they got away successfully, as I would make sure they would, I would have to hunt them down. I would be the "bad" guy sent to force them back to Manticore, or kill them trying. I could live with them hating me, but I couldn't live knowing they were locked up in a place they hated. I had to make sure that out in the real world I could protect them, be the real father I wanted to, needed to. And I knew how to do that.  
  
X5-116. She was the youngest; the most frail out of all the X5s, but I still loved her like the others. And now, when I look back on those days, I think I might have loved her ever more. None of the doctors expected her to survive in the conditions Manticore would force upon all my kids. Their feelings were conveyed to those on the Committee, and they were expecting me to announce in one of my status reports that she had died. The other kids wouldn't be surprised, but I knew they would fight to make sure it didn't happen. I saw how they protected her. Someone strong was always paired up with her. They took the brunt of all the missions I placed upon them, and they thought I wouldn't notice. If placed under the right conditions, X5-116 would grow to be strong. Maybe even stronger than her brothers and sisters. That's why I pulled her out of Manticore. I sent her to live with my sister, to grow up in a home that would love her. My sister knew about Manticore, I told her. And she knew how much this child I placed in her care meant to me. I wasn't worried about X5-116, I was worried about the Committee finding out. I did my best to falsify all the records that she'd died. Even with one of the doctors on my side, and three of my most trustworthy soldiers, I still worried.  
  
The Committee worried me, but telling the other X5s that their sister had died, terrified me. They wouldn't believe me if I told them that their sister died of sickness, as much as I didn't want their hate for me amplified, I had to be a soldier. So I told them another lie, a lie that I would never consider if I wasn't forced. Like I predicted, they hated me even more. But they didn't lash out, they held their emotions, like I taught them to. I watched them later that night, when they thought they were alone, that's when they cried. Silently to themselves, or openly with one another. I wanted to comfort them and tell them that she was alive, and they would see her again, but I couldn't. After that, I became the soldier I knew I was. I didn't hold back in reprimanding them, but I held back in loving them. I could love them when I visited X5-116, and my sister. I could be the father I always wanted then.  
  
When they did escape, and I was ordered to hunt them down. I had hoped that if X5-116 wasn't successful in keeping them away from me, I could bring them back to Manticore without hurting them. But when I continued to fail, the Committee ordered me to kill them if I had to. That almost killed me. The girl named Eva had been the only one to die by my hand, and that was forced. The director was behind me, if I hadn't done what I did, I would probably have been replaced. I didn't want that. I didn't want to be taken away from my kids, and I didn't want them to be taken away from me. The next person placed in charge might too gentle with them and not prepare them for the life they would lead outside, or he could be too tough and kill them off one by one. I was careful in training them that I didn't put them through anything that they could die from. And even then I was careful in watching them and making sure they were okay. I wish I could say I was always that careful, but I only began after one incident, an incident in which X5-116 almost died from. I'm sorry to say that I got there too late and that she had to be scared for such a while. I didn't feel like a dad then, and I was determined to make it up to her once she came out of Manticore.  
  
* * *  
  
He was in the same city, and a new tattoo parlor. He didn't know why he preferred to waste his money getting the same tattoo removed every two weeks than to spend it on necessities. But he knew was just like that. He needed to erase Manticore from his body, and everything else, the Blue Lady would provide for.  
  
Ben laid down on his stomach, pointing to the barcode on the back of his neck. "Remove it."  
  
The burly tattoo guy gave a low whistle. "Your gang breaking up?" He asked. Ben didn't reply, a lot of people assumed it was a gang symbol. It didn't surprise him at all. "We had a guy in here just yesterday getting his removed. Same symbol, only the lines were different width and everything. Actually, if I remember corrected, it was in the exact same place." This had perked Ben's interested and he lay there listening as the guy bustled around describing the guy while getting the stuff he needed. He wanted to find his brothers and sisters. They had been separated for too long.  
  
"Thanks." Ben said half an hour later when the guy finished and his neck felt like a fire had been set on it.  
  
The guy nodded his thanks as he was handed cash.  
  
Ben strolled back towards the apartment he had rented two months prior. He would have to leave soon. He'd been to four tattoo parlors in St. Louis since he got here. If word got around that the same guy was getting the same tattoo removed over and over again, it would bring Lydecker. But hearing the guy say that someone else had a similar tattoo removed only a day before fired up his curiosity. Another X5, was in town. One of his brothers. Ben had to find him before he left.  
  
He trudged up four flights of stairs deep in thought and stopped in front of his apartment. He reached into his pocket to pull out his keys and it was only then that he noticed the door open a hair's width. Noticeable only to an X5. Instead of pulling out his keys, he pulled out his .22 millimeter. Transferring it to his right hand, he shoved the door opened before stepping inside training the gun ahead of him. He wasn't afraid of Lydecker; no way he could have traced Ben's whereabouts to this apartment. "Zack." Ben said quietly seeing the solitary figure facing the window and looking out. He kicked the door shut with his foot, pocketed the gun, and moved closer to his brother. "Or Zane, whoever you are."  
  
"Ben." Zack said finally turning from the window. "Lydecker's tracked you to this city. You've been compromised. Time to move out."  
  
Ben nodded silently reverting back to old Manticore training. He moved into his bedroom and grabbed a duffel bag already packed with clothes. He was always ready to move. However unexpectedly or at whatever the hell time of day it was. He returned to the living room and began to take apart the coffee table to collect the money he'd been hiding in there. Off came one of the legs and out came a couple of twenties unstuffed from the hollow inside.  
  
Zack moved to sit down on the couch. "I've been setting up a system." He said watching Ben work carefully. "You X5s get to live wherever you want to and live the life you want to as long as you're safe. And when you're compromised, I'll help you move to another secure location. I have a contact number you can call when you're in trouble and you have to call to check in once a week to let me know you're all right. Sound good to you?"  
  
Ben let the silence stretch as he continued to collect his money and then arrange them neatly to stuff into his wallet. He considered Zack's option. It sounded good, but he knew Zack, there was a catch. And the catch was that he wouldn't get to see any of his other siblings. "Are the others hooked up?"  
  
"Yeah."  
  
"Who haven't you found?" Ben asked, curious as to whether the 'others' included all ten other X5s or just the ones found.  
  
"Max. She's staying pretty well hidden." Zack said. That was a lie. And he knew it. He'd found Max, settled in Seattle and unwilling to leave. Out of all the other X5s, she left the biggest trail, but only in Seattle. As long as he kept the others away from Seattle, they wouldn't discover her and attempt to meet her.  
  
Ben nodded. "Sure, I guess it'll work… for now." He added the last part making sure Zack knew what he meant. "Where to?"  
  
"Houston." Zack replied.  
  
* * *  
  
"Jerk!" The girl muttered beneath her breath as she left the bar and the rowdy crowd it held. A sigh escaped her mouth as she wandered off into the night. She wasn't suppose to be out tonight, it was Sunday and she had school tomorrow, but the night was just calling for her to get out and about, then there'd been that phone call from her dad. That was the whole reason she'd snuck out anyway. She only hoped her 'mom' wouldn't check her room and discovered her bed empty.  
  
Her wanderings took her near the manufacturing district and a gunshot startled her. The hell?! Her mind said as her curiosity got the better of her and she had to check it out. She climbed a chain link fence and dropped down to the other side before tiptoeing her way towards the building. There was a broken window with light shining through just her height and she peeked through. Before her eyes there were three very nice SUVs parked with a bunch of men standing around. The two who really caught her eye were the two young men, dressed in regular jeans and t-shirts being held. They weren't that bad looking, in fact, they weren't bad looking at all.  
  
* * *  
  
Ben looked over at his brother, trying to make eye contact so they could figure out a plan. There was still plenty of chances left to get away; they just had to coordinate their movements like they were taught as kids. That way they could throw these untrained norm soldiers off and get away.  
  
Zack struggled against the bonds that held him. He didn't have only himself to think of, but his brother also. Even though he knew Ben could take care of himself, he wasn't going to take any chances. Ten years out in this mess could have softened anyone up. He glanced around, surveying the situation. If he made any move, than the guns trained on Ben would be used, he couldn't risk that. There wasn't many options left. If the two of them could coordinate an attack, then they might get away, but he couldn't trust Ben that much. The soldiers handling him roughly shoved him into the backseat of one of the SUVs. He saw they did the same to Ben and his heart sank. He could let Lydecker and his men take them back to Manticore.  
  
Ben groaned inwardly with disappointment. Zack had never once looked his way to plan an escape. This told Ben a lot, Zack wasn't as coordinate as he was when they were younger, and most of all, he didn't trust anyone, not even his own family. The SUV he was in began moving and than rapidly gained speed. He would have to get himself out of this jam. He took note of the speed they were moving at, it would be tough to land correctly if he jumped. Even as the trained soldier he was suppose to be, he began to despair. He twisted to get a look at Zack behind him and felt a small tremor before the vehicle he was in careened wildly. He heard two shots being fired before becoming aware of the soldiers with him scrambling for their automatics. He wondered if Zack had acted upon some half-thought plan.  
  
Zack's eyes narrowed as the SUV that held Ben slammed into a tree. The driver of their vehicle hesitated; wondering what to do and wasn't given a chance to think anymore as a shot fired hit him right between the eyes. He heard another shots fired and the soldier in the passenger seat slumped over, dead. The two men sitting beside him began to panic as they groped for their guns.  
  
Three soldiers had descended to survey the situation they were in and to call for the first car which by now must be wondering what had happened. Three more shots were fired and the soldiers dropped in their tracks. Ben felt the two soldiers left around him fidget uncomfortably before they alighted and took off, running for their lives followed closely by the driver. They were joined by five others from Zack's SUV. Annoyed, he inched his way towards the door, hoping to get out and find something to cut his bonds when the door was yanked open, almost off its hinges. A girl stood there, holding a set of keys and clicked her tongue disappointedly at him. She had his chains off in less than a minute before dragging him out of the backseat and pushed him towards the woods.  
  
Micaela reached the other SUV and opened its backdoor, making sure not to rip it off. Cold blue eyes met her and regarded her suspiciously. She jangled the set of keys in her hand and grinned. She could hear the first SUV approaching. Finally the blue eyes lowered and the guy held out first his hands and then feet. She removed his bonds and then stepped back to let him alight. She heard and felt the other guy approach behind her, but she ignored him. She pointed towards the woods. "There's a lake about fifteen miles out with a bunch of cabins sitting around it. Far side, cabin number 23. You'll be safe there for the night." She said. "And now, don't thank me cause God knows you want to. Just do me the favor and forget you ever met me or that I was ever here to help. I don't exist." She added for emphasis.  
  
Ben nodded as he studied the girl closely standing between him and his brother. She was shorter than they were, and a bit younger with long golden blonde hair in a French braid that seemed to shine in the night. She had pale skin, which was only magnified by the dark clothing she wore. She turned around to smile at him again, startling him with bright blue eyes that seemed vaguely familiar, before pulling some sort of mask over her head.  
  
Zack was about to say something but was interrupted by the arrival of the first SUV and then Lydecker shouting orders as around seven soldiers poured forth. From behind they heard the previous couple of soldiers, the ones who ran, approaching, cocking their automatics.  
  
"I would say this is my exit call." Micaela murmured. "Even X5s can't tangled against several automatics and hope to win." She said to their surprise. "Remember my directions."  
  
Zack shook his head slightly meeting Ben's gaze. "We won't have to. You're going to be coming with us." He said grabbing her as Ben took off for the woods right before the shooting started.  
  
Micaela was about to protest that she was headed in the opposite direction when she felt a steel ball hit her in her side. She gasped as Zack hoisted her over his shoulder, obviously oblivious to her circumstance. "Careful…" She yelped digging her nails into his back. "You've got an injured female." She said through clenched teeth as they moved out of range of the guns. She sucked in her breath when Zack shifted her.  
  
Ben looked over his shoulder only once when she had first uttered a sound. She was correct in saying that X5s couldn't outrun firing from an automatic, at least not forever. He had looked back once to check on her and had noticed a dark spot spreading along her side. There was a sick feeling in his stomach and he quickened his pace to put more distance between them and the soldiers.  
  
Zack's fingers found the wound in her side and he pressed his fingers against it, hoping to slow the blood flow. The pressure of her nails digging into his back had been released and she had since stopped complaining. He hoped she would be okay. The cabin she had talked about was still over a good ten miles away.  
  
* * *  
  
"X5-116!" Lydecker yelled out.  
  
She stepped forward not showing any of the fear that was present in the rest of their minds. "X5-116, sir!" She yelled out her designation, saluting.  
  
"Come with me X5." Lydecker said before leading the way out of the room. "The rest of you remain here." He said turning slightly to address the other X5s.  
  
That was the last time any of them ever saw her again. The next day Lydecker came and told them she had died during a routine training test, but they knew better. She had been perfectly healthy, always had been, there was no way she could have just keeled over and died. She was the youngest of them, but that didn't make her weaker. Everyone had always looked at her and handled her like she was glass, but she wasn't. If she had to, she could carry just as much, do everything that the rest of them could do. Plus they heard some of the soldiers talking, rumoring that the Committee had become tired of wasting money putting up with a weakness, and had ordered her to be exterminated. Whatever the reason, she was gone from their lives.  
  
"We didn't try hard enough. If we had tried harder, they wouldn't have taken her." Ben said defiantly. "The Blue Lady would have protected her, she says so. 116 was weak, too weak, and we didn't do enough to make up for it so we all had to pay." He was such a believer that at times the other wondered if he maybe took the Blue Lady too seriously.  
  
But, that was the answer Ben gave the first time, and it wouldn't be the last. It was the same story he gave when Jack became sick and they took him away. That he wasn't strong enough, and the Blue Lady wouldn't put up with him. And it was the same one they heard when Eva was shot.  
  
Max shook her head. "No, that's not true! We tried out best. We're only kids. There wasn't anything we could have done, right Zack?" Her eyes begged their CO to agree with her, and he did. 


	2. Chapter 2

My Little Angel  
  
By Astro Purple  
  
AstroPurpl@aol.com  
  
PG for language and violence.  
  
Timeline: Anytime before Max killed Ben. He hadn't gone crazy yet and Zack just found him.  
  
Summary: Exactly how much does Lydecker care about his "kids." And how far is he willing to go to protect them?  
  
Disclaimer: Dark Angel characters belong to the wonderful people who bring Dark Angel to us.  
  
* * *  
  
Ben kicked open the door to the cabin before stepping in cautiously. He motioned for Zack to follow before shutting the door securely to guard against intruders.  
  
Zack laid the girl down carefully on the worn couch before beginning an examination of her wound. He turned the lights in the room on low before ordering his younger brother. "Go get some water." Gently, he lifted the mesh shirt she was wearing to expose the bullet wound. Ben returned setting down a large bowl of water beside him before wandering off again. Zack ignored his brother's seemingly uncaring nature before pulling the stocking like mask off the girl's face, intent on using it as a rag. He soaked it in the cool water before applying it to the wound. He noted with satisfaction that the bleeding had pretty much stopped and the entrance and exit was clean.  
  
"She going to be all right?" Ben asked as he rejoined his brother, after scouring the cabin for a first aid kit and then bed sheet. The sheet he proceeded to rip into strips to be used as bandage.  
  
Zack nodded. "I think so." He cleaned the wound thoroughly and than patched it up with whatever he could use that Ben had discovered lying around in the cabin.  
  
"So who do you think this is?" Ben asked leaning back to study the girl before them. "Max?" He suggested.  
  
Zack shook his head. "No. Max is darker. She had a touch of Hispanic in her blood. If I hadn't found everyone, I might say this was Syl, but I found her and I'm sure it's her." He stared at the unconscious girl before him. There was only one way to find out if she was one of them or not, and he wasn't thinking of asking her. He wasn't looking forward to it since he knew how precious their barcodes were to them. It was them, their identity, their name, and their life. Most of all, it was what connected them as family, Manticore created, but family nonetheless.  
  
Ben watched the conflict moving across Zack's face. He knew what his big brother was feeling since his barcode was a precious thing to him also. They needed to find out who she was and if she could be trusted or not. She already knew too much, she revealed it all just by her comment, "even X5s can't tangled against several automatics and hope to win." He could practically hear her say that line in his head, like a part of his brain had recorded it just to play it over and over again to torment him. If this was one of his sisters, he had to know her and know she was all right. If she wasn't, then who was she? Who else out there besides that cyber journalist, Eyes Only, knew about the X5s and about Manticore? "We have to." Ben whispered softly. "To protect the others in case she turns into a security breach."  
  
That was one of the good things about Ben, he always thought with that soldier head of his when it came to protecting them and their family, always. Zack was glad to have someone on his side during tough times, but Ben could be difficult also. Out of all of them, he was the one who believed the Blue Lady stories they wove the most. Taking them to heart and believing them to be truths instead of the lies spun by young kids under harsh circumstances. Believing in the Blue Lady also turned Ben apathetic to certain situations. Where one of their younger siblings might have cried and preached against killing an innocent norm, Ben was all for it. Blind he was to thoughts that maybe they could be friends with norms and live side-by-side in peace among them. This is what scared Zack the most. Ben would kill his best friend if it meant helping his family or saving what he believed in, what would he do if it came to killing someone like themselves? Another transgenic, or worse yet, one of his siblings?  
  
Ben moved first, signaling the end of the silence. He propped the girl into an upright position, holding her body still as Zack pulled at the color of her shirt to find a barcode. Nothing.  
  
"She could have had it removed." Zack said bluntly. "I mean, we do. It's not permanent but it does the trick for two weeks."  
  
Ben nodded; knowing perfectly well that Zack was just buying time. As much as he loved his brother, Zack still had his faults. It didn't seem fair that Zack was CO just because he was born first. Ben knew he could do the job just as good, maybe even better. "We can wait until she wakes up. But how will we know she truly is Manticore and not just spouting off stuff she learned from others or heard about?"  
  
"We can deal with that, when it comes up."  
  
* * *  
  
"Tell us the story, Ben." X5-452 requested of her older brother.  
  
493 smiled at his siblings gathered around him. "Only the best soldiers get to go to the Good Place. The ones who fail… you know what happens to them?"  
  
"They disappear." 116 whispered quietly, snuggling closer to her oldest brother. He looked down at her and patted her on the head. "I'm a good soldier…?" She commented, creasing her forehead and making the statement a question.  
  
599 nodded. "You're not one of the good soldiers, you're one of the best soldiers. And you're going to be even better the more you grow." 116 nodded, satisfied.  
  
493 continued with his story once more. "They disappear to the Bad Place. Where they open you up and drink your blood until you're almost dead. Then they leave you there for the Nomlies to finish off. They crawl up from the basement through special tunnels, and when you're not looking… BAM! They break through the wall and drag you away."  
  
"What do the Nomlies do with you?" Zane prompted, eyes wide with fear.  
  
"They keep you as a prisoner of war, and eat you up, little by little, forever."  
  
116 shivered as 493 finished.  
  
* * *  
  
Micaela became aware of her surroundings, immediately going into alert mode. She kept her breathing even and her muscles relaxed, pretending to still be asleep, or rather unconscious. Gradually she became aware of others things in the room. Two steady heartbeats and breathing to go along with it, and the rustling of clothing now and then, as if someone was becoming impatient.  
  
"You can open your eyes, there's nothing to be afraid of." A voice spoke, startling her.  
  
Her eyes popped open and she studied the two still figures before her. "Figures as much that I can't trick X5s." She sat up, wincing slightly before glancing at her patched up wound. "Staying here for the night?" She inquired glancing at the time. "I figured you'd both be up for the 'get the hell outta town while you still can' phase of action."  
  
"We can still go for that, but now let's talk about you. You intrigue us. What are you and who are you? How and what do you know about Project Manticore and the X5 series?" Ben fired his questions, not giving the girl a chance to speak.  
  
Micaela smiled. "You're still the same Ben, always looking for direct answers and not wanting to believe what was plainly before your face." She gazed sadly down at her hands. "I missed you all while I was gone. Zack the most. I--"  
  
"Look up at us when you're talking. So we know you're not lying." Ben ordered, a catch in his voice.  
  
Zack glanced quizzically at Ben and the attitude he was pushing forward, instead, he leaned forward and began to speak, softly. "Who are you? State your designation. There were only twelve of us who escaped, and I found everyone."  
  
Micaela looked up at him, meeting his serious blue eyes. "I'm called Micaela, or once known as X5…" Her voice faltered. "X5-116. I'm not dead, regardless of what Colonel Lydecker or others informed you. It was false and agreed upon to be the best for everyone."  
  
"Who?"  
  
A bit of laughter escaped and Micaela leaned back against the couch to stare at the ceiling. "It doesn't matter now. All you need to know is that they were the ones who got me out of Manticore, and with good reason. They knew all of you would be where you're at now, outside. They knew that the rest of you would make an attempt to escape, and succeed. Or… rather he knew. I'm suppose to be helping you all, keeping Manticore from taking you back." Her hand pressed against her wound. "I thought I was doing a good job also, but I guess not."  
  
Zack got up from the floor and moved to the couch so he could put his arms around his baby sister. "You are doing a good job. Ben and I would be at Manticore right now if you hadn't shown up when you did. You can help us more by telling us who these people are that are 'helping' the others and me."  
  
Micaela shook her head. "I can't. It would put them in danger. I told once, only once, and it almost leaked, I had to kill him." She buried her face into Zack's shoulder.  
  
"I don't believe you." Ben said sharply. "You can't believe her, Zack. She's lying. 116 died years ago at Manticore's hands. They sent her to get information about the others out of us, and than when she can't get anymore, she'll take us back to Manticore to get the information out of us through force. All she's done is drop a few names and woven some elaborate story about secret benefactors together. If she's an X5, she's a good liar, we were all trained to lie."  
  
Micaela pulled herself away from Zack to look directly at Ben. "Ben, tell me about the Good Place." He looked at her with a faraway expression on his face, so she started to help him begin. "Where no one ever gets punished. And no one gets yelled at, or disappears. When you wake up in the morning…"  
  
"You can stay in bed as long as you want." Ben finished, a stricken expression on his face.  
  
"No one else should know about our story, isn't that right, Ben?" Micaela inquired. "We made it up ourselves to make us feel better after he, 386, died. I was crying, Brin and me, and you wanted to make us feel better, so you told us that he had gone on to the Good Place and would be happier there. And later when we would complain about the training, and everything about Manticore, you created the Bad Place to scare us into line. We made up the Nomlies to describe what we saw in the basement that one-day. It had scared us, and since no one explained what it was, we made up an explanation. Don't deny now that I'm not 116. None of the X5s from the other squadrons knew about our stories, and they couldn't. We were always kept separate. Different wings of Manticore." Micaela sighed. "But you're also right, big brother. X5-116 did die, years ago, and I'm what came into being from her death. When she died, it allowed me to live."  
  
* * *  
  
"I'm scared." 116 said quietly as she sat huddled on her bed. 599 and 493 climbed up to join her. "Are they going to take me away to the dark place?" She asked, looking back and forth between her two oldest brothers in regards to the accident earlier that day. "I don't know what happened. I… I panicked." She added, her eyes filling with tears.  
  
493 shook his head. "No… no of course they're not." He replied pulling her into his lap. "You did what each of us would have done in that situation. There wasn't anything else you could have done."  
  
599 nodded when blue eyes inquired into his. "You were really brave to be the first to jump into that tank. We weren't engineered to love water, but you took to it like a fish."  
  
116 looked at her two brothers with an expression that showed she didn't believe anything they were saying. "But then the Captain had my feet chained to the bottom and sealed the top. There wasn't unlimited air anymore, it had turned into… into…" She struggled to recall the name Colonel Lydecker had called it after pulling her out.  
  
"Never mind what he called it, it doesn't matter that you panicked or couldn't hold your breath anymore. All that matters is that you were the first to jump in and let your brothers and sisters see what the Captain planned to do with it. It took guts to jump in like that not knowing what was going to happen." 599 tried to reassure her.  
  
"Are you sure they're not going to come drag me away?"  
  
"Yes, we're sure." 493 said. "If they try, we'll protect you. We're your big brothers and sisters, it's what we're suppose to do. It's what the Blue Lady would want us to do."  
  
* * *  
  
The memory woke him and Ben slowly opened his eyes. They had fallen asleep only about an hour ago while telling Micaela about their lives and what happened after she had been taken away, and she in turn had told them about her life out of Manticore. He looked towards where she had lain after falling asleep and felt his heart sink. Her spot was empty, and his wondrous hearing told him there was no one anywhere close. "Zack…" He toughed his brother's arm gently, waking him up immediately. How could they not have heard her leave? "Micaela's gone." He whispered as Zack began to realize the situation.  
  
Zack stood and did a quick search of the cabin. Meanwhile Ben dug around in the room they had occupied and discovered the note and envelope. "What does it say?" He whispered, feeling tired as all the events earlier that night caught up with him.  
  
Wordlessly, Ben handed him the note.  
  
Hey!  
  
Sorry to leave so suddenly and unexpectedly, but I needed to get home before the family I'm with wakes up and discovers me gone. I'd rather not our wonderful local law enforcement in the area become involved. Just to bring you two up to track, I've recently just come into a lot of money, left most of it with you two to pass around to my widely scattered family and have it be put to use. It's not going to help anyone just sitting in a shoebox tucked in the eternal depths of my closet. Sorry we couldn't say a real bye, but you both were exhausted and sleeping like angels. I didn't want to wake you. Anyways, it was really great seeing you both and talking with you. I had a fun night, except for the getting shot part. Maybe we'll meet again as I bail your asses out of another jam.  
  
Micaela  
  
X5-116  
  
* * *  
  
Micaela slipped back into her room and bed with just enough time to catch some sleep before the sun rose. She got up the next morning, dressed and went downstairs for breakfast.  
  
Her 'mother' passed her on the stairwell, saying. "Your uncle arrived late last night, we didn't want to disturb your rest so we didn't wake you." She explained.  
  
"All right, thanks a lot." Micaela said as she swiftly descended the rest of the stairs and entered the kitchen. "Hey dad." She said softly as the newspaper rustled and was then set down.  
  
Donald Lydecker smiled, his expression strained, at her as she took a seat and grabbed breakfast. "You weren't suppose to get shot. The plan was for the SUV I was in to get there and find several dead soldiers and the X5s escaped. No one was suppose to know that there was a third person involved in breaking X5-599 and X5-493 out."  
  
"Nothing always goes according to the plan unless both sides execute it perfectly. I was a bit slow on my end. Besides, it was an accident." Micaela said, patting the bandaging beneath the T-shirt she wore. "But I'm fine. Accelerated healing helps. My night was fine. I met two of my brothers, convinced them I was who I was, and gave them the money you wanted them to have."  
  
"No questions?" Lydecker asked, concerned.  
  
Micaela shrugged. "I managed to avoid most of them." She paused and turned to glance out the doorway where she could faintly hear her 'mother' bustling around. "Can we ever tell her? I really wanted to spend more time with them."  
  
The spoon clinked against the cup as he stirred his coffee. "One of these days, maybe. But you have to remember, for everyone we tell, the dangers of leakage are magnified. Plus…" He paused. "I don't want to put my sister in danger. If anyone ever questions her, she'll be able to answer truthfully she doesn't know anything about Manticore or the X5 series, and that she adopted you from a family whose father had been killed. I brought you home to her because that soldier was under my command."  
  
"Yea, I understand. It's just weird calling her, mother, when she's not my mother, and never could be." A car horn honked outside and Micaela busied herself with finishing breakfast. "If you're staying the rest of the day, we can talk later. I'm late for school."  
  
Lydecker nodded. "If you need to see a doctor, call me." He said seriously as she gathered her stuff and dashed out the door. He sighed. "My little angel." He whispered.  
  
* * *  
  
So what do we think of this new side of Lydecker??? Hey! It could happen! It could be true! We already know he thinks of the X5s as his kids and he'd rather not Renfro hurt them. Well anyway, review please!!! 


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